Video of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy kissing Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi on the cheek following his address to a joint session of Congress has been viewed more than 200,000 times.
Zelensky delivered the speech to Congress in English during his first trip outside Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion of the country on February 24 and he thanked the U.S. and its allies for their support.
At the end of his remarks, Zelensky presented Congress with a Ukrainian flag that he'd received from troops during a visit to the city of Bakhmut in the country's eastern Donbas region.
As Zelensky handed the flag to Pelosi, he reached up to the dais and kissed the speaker on the cheek. She appeared to be taken by surprise but smiled at Zelensky and held up the flag along with Vice President Kamala Harris.
A CSPAN video of the moment posted to Twitter by John Hudson of The Washington Post had been viewed more than 200,000 times as of early Thursday morning.
Some social media users also reacted to the kiss with surprise and others praised the moment.
"How moving was it when Zelensky reached up to kiss Pelosi at the end of his speech during the roar of Congress?" tweeted user Karl Rosenfeld.
User @BadBradRSR tweeted: "I love Speaker Pelosi kissed President Zelensky... It showed humanity & lord knows we need more of it!"
"Sorry but Pelosi & Zelensky stole the show with the cute cheek kiss and sincere big smile. VP had the same smile. Great happy moment. May God protect Ukrainians!" tweeted Sharon Hayes.
Others were less enthusiastic about the kiss, however, with Twitter user @BleauxR writing: "I cannot believe that I just watched Zelensky speak at the Podium of the President of the United States and then turn around and give Pelosi a big ole wet kiss. This reality that we find ourselves in is a train wreck that we cannot seem to stop."
During his speech on Wednesday, Zelensky said that Ukraine's continued resistance to the Russian invasion was a victory for the U.S. and Europe as well as Ukraine and repeatedly pointed to the aid Kyiv has received from the U.S. and its allies.
"Americans gained this victory, and that's why you have succeeded in uniting the global community to protect freedom and international law. Europeans gained this victory, and that's why Europe is now stronger and more independent than ever," he said.
The omnibus spending bill now being considered by the Senate contains around $45 billion in new emergency assistance for Ukraine, though it remains to be seen if the bill will pass before a Friday deadline that risks a government shutdown.
Pelosi is stepping down from her leadership role in the Democratic caucus in January but she will remain in the House representing her California district.
Newsweek has asked Nancy Pelosi's office for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Darragh Roche is a U.S. News Reporter based in Limerick, Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. politics. He has ... Read more
